Available Positions

Lead Gardener

Location: Little River, Greater Miami-Dade
Job Type: Part time

  • Little River Cooperative, South Florida’s leading edible garden and nursery business, is seeking focused, positive, hard-working team members to help our Garden Team install and maintain edible gardens on a part-time basis. Most jobs take place in residential homes, restaurants and schools.

    The lead gardener role is in charge of installing new raised bed gardens and other types of edible gardens such as food forests and container gardens for our clients. The lead gardener also does simple drip irrigation installations and routine maintenance visits for our clients. It requires a knowledge of edible garden skills such as optimum sun exposure, watering needs, plant spacing, organic pest management and harvesting. The lead gardener will be communicating with clients on a regular basis and driving to job sites to install new gardens or do maintenance visits (in our company van). They must be able to drive a large van, use our job tracking app on their smartphone and take clear photos of job sites for posterity. The lead gardener will sometimes work on their own, but most of the time works as part of a team of 2 with an assistant. 

    SCHEDULE:

    Lead gardeners are expected to be available Tuesday-Thursday. Most days will begin at 7am at our headquarters in Little River, usually ending around 4pm or 5pm. Some work days can be expected to start at 6:30am depending on project scope. Team members are also expected to be available on Mondays for 1 hour for a virtual team meeting. 

    ABOUT THE COMPANY:

    Our mission is to empower people to grow their own food & medicine at home through education & exposure to farming in an urban environment. We do that by building gardens, growing plants, teaching workshops and more.

    We create gardens that blend with South Florida's natural and rugged beauty. They often feature kitchen gardens, winding paths, lots of blooming plants and hardy drought tolerant species. We have more than 15 years of experience growing food in South Florida and building gardens in residential, educational and hospitality settings.

    KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

    • Install various types of raised bed gardens and perform routine maintenance visits

    • Install drip irrigation systems

    • Design layout for seasonal vegetable, herb and flower plants within a wide range of garden styles

    • Communicate with clients respectfully and clearly and document jobs effectively

    • Meet at our headquarters in Little River, follow instructions to load van and drive to 2 or 3 job sites per day to perform maintenance or installation duties

    • Work independently, communicate clearly, follow directions and be attentive to safety, and take initiative to help others

    • Uphold Little River Cooperative’s standards for safety, respect, professionalism, efficiency, and community

    THE IDEAL CANDIDATE:

    • Is positive, energetic, and has a strong work ethic

    • Is punctual and time efficient, can work early mornings, and is responsible

    • Possesses a smart phone and is able to install and use a software app our team uses for scheduling, documenting jobs and communicating with clients

    • Is comfortable using the google suite

    • Has advanced experience and knowledge of edible garden installations and organic maintenance techniques such as organic pest management, pruning and harvesting

    • Possesses some carpentry / construction skills and knowledge of general assembly techniques, and is comfortable operating heavy machinery/power tools

    • Is comfortable driving large vehicles and working off-site

    • Is comfortable working on a team of 2 and delegating tasks. Demonstrates initiative and leads by example

    • Is a doer: upon finishing a task, will immediately begin undertaking another; thinks big picture while also being attentive to the details; looks ahead to determine what needs to get done

    • Can lift 50 lbs repeatedly, and can squat, kneel, bend over, and reach for extended periods

    WHAT WE’RE OFFERING:

    • A progressive work environment as part of a small and enthusiastic team 

    • An hourly rate of $30/hr

    • Discounts to Little River Cooperative workshops and free starter plants from our nursery as well as Miami’s most delicious vegetables when in season

    TO APPLY:

    Respond to the following questions and email to

    mail@littlerivercooperative.com. Please include your full name, phone number, a resume and 2 referrals. The subject line should read, 

    Lead Gardener Application

    1. What is it about this job description that made you think this position was for you?

    2. What are your 3 strongest attributes and how do they relate to this position?

    3. Why are you well suited to this position?

    4. What is your biggest success?

    5. Also please confirm that the conditions of the job (days of the week, location, pay) have been read and understood.